Focal Ford IS 165

[JDowns]

I should forewarn anyone considering these as a factory upgrade without a subwoofer. I went through this scenario before on my F150. The mid bass on these speakers can only be described as "non existent". Do not use these speakers if you are not planning on a subwoofer. The stock speakers provide far more mid bass at the expense of muddled mid range. What these speakers do accomplish is a very clean and crisp midrange with warm highs from the tweeters (unlike their other range of tweeters which can be described as harsh). I really wish Crutchfield and Focal would be upfront about this to save folks the hassle. Focal claims these speakers will go down to 60hz, but there is no chance they go anywhere near that low. A pair of 8" would go well with these speakers or a decent non ported 10".

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[JDowns]

I’ll have to retract this somewhat. The Focals shouldn’t have been that flat. Took the front doors back apart and found the cap on one side was on the negative. Resoldered the speaker and re-installed. Now they hit just as good as the stock but much cleaner. Definitely worth the upgrade. Now it has me reconsidering the sub. The Focal 8 would provide some nice tonal boost at lower volume, or at least a 10” on the kicker. I would do another JL power wedge but I would prefer something that can fit under the seat in the rear footwell under the dogs bed.

 

[brohammer619]

that's crazy -- there was a cap on the negative side?

 

[maxbottomtime]

I’ll have to retract this somewhat. The Focals shouldn’t have been that flat. Took the front doors back apart and found the cap on one side was on the negative. Resoldered the speaker and re-installed. Now they hit just as good as the stock but much cleaner. Definitely worth the upgrade. Now it has me reconsidering the sub. The Focal 8 would provide some nice tonal boost at lower volume, or at least a 10” on the kicker. I would do another JL power wedge but I would prefer something that can fit under the seat in the rear footwell under the dogs bed.

You installed without an amp? Trying to understand the targeted audience for these - from their website (no cutting, soldering etc. ) it looks like they are marketing these as drop in replacements.

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